Online Search Engine College Launched

13-May-04 – A new online training institution offering instructor-led short courses and downloadable self-study courses in search engine optimization (SEO) and search engine marketing subjects is to be launched today.

Search Engine College is the brainchild of search engine optimization industry expert Kalena Jordan of Web Rank who, for the past eight years, has been optimizing the web sites of clients to help them achieve higher search rankings.

Kalena, who teaches the SEO courses for the new institution, recognized a gap in the market for an online training facility where persons could learn search engine optimization techniques and other search engine marketing subjects from experts in the industry:

“I was constantly being asked the same questions by webmasters about how to make their sites search engine friendly”, she says.

“I was also asked if I knew of any online institutions that offered courses in search engine optimization. I didn’t, so my industry colleagues and I decided to create one. Now anyone with a PC and an Internet connection can go and learn this stuff for themselves, no matter where they are in the world.”

Search Engine College courses are aimed at a wide target audience, including marketing executives responsible for promoting their company’s web site via search engines, small business owners wanting to learn how to market their own web sites via search engines and students or unemployed persons wanting to learn how to optimize web sites for search engines in preparation for starting their own search engine optimization business or applying for a job in the lucrative search engine marketing industry.

Kalena’s colleagues at Search Engine College include well-known industry experts Dan Thies, Bob Gladstein, Karon Thackston, Chris Dimmock and Kimberly Krause. These tutors all have extensive search engine marketing experience and are highly qualified to lead students through the course material. Subjects available for study at SEC include search engine optimization, pay per click search marketing (including how to manage advertising campaigns on Google AdWords and Overture), web site usability, keyword research, link building and web site copywriting.

Search Engine College is a truly global concept. Tutors hail from the world over, including the U.K., New Zealand, U.S.A. and Australia. Classes are held in various time-zones to accommodate both tutors and students. Course material is available via PDF downloads and students complete online quizzes each week to ensure they have successfully absorbed the course content.

No risky search engine optimization techniques or “spamdexing” methods are taught in the classes. Only those methodologies deemed acceptable to search engines, (based on webmaster guidelines published by the search engines themselves), are encouraged.

“I’m tired of seeing innocent companies get burned by unscrupulous firms claiming to be search engine marketing gurus and promising to submit their sites to 50,000 search engines. These are nothing more than backyard cowboys who play Russian Roulette with their clients’ sites”, says Kalena.

“Unfortunately, this industry is full of such firms who propagate myth and legend by publishing information that is misleading, deceptive and often downright false. No wonder webmasters are confused when it comes to search engines. With the amount of incorrect information floating around out there, it is extremely difficult for newcomers to sort out fact from fiction. I’m hoping graduates of Search Engine College will address this imbalance”.

All courses offered by Search Engine College use a holistic approach to web site promotion, focusing on the importance of web site design, functionality and usability as well as search engine compatibility. Students can choose to participate in tutor-led courses or download a self-study course to take at their own pace.

The College is currently accepting student registrations for their first intake of search engine marketing courses commencing in June.

About Search Engine College

Search Engine College (SEC) is an online training institution offering instructor-led short courses and downloadable self-study courses in Search Engine Optimization and Search Engine Marketing subjects. SEC is owned by Web Rank Ltd and managed by well-known search engine optimization industry expert Kalena Jordan. Kalena teaches the SEO Starter course (SEO 101) and the SEO Advanced course (SEO 201) and supervises all other classes. All classes are run in conjunction with experienced tutors specialized in various aspects of search engine marketing and well-respected in the industry.

About Web Rank

Web Rank specializes in optimizing their clients’ web sites to help them achieve higher search engine rankings and attract more relevant site visitors. It was established in Australia in 1999, with its New Zealand office opening in 2000. Web Rank has helped more than 50 clients across ten countries including small start-ups to Fortune 100 companies. Visit www.webrank.biz for more information.